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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

G. P. HEDGE.

AUTOMATIC STOP FOR ELEVATORS. No. 386,743. 8 Patented July 24, 1888. a 1/49 xfi 2% i I AF/ 1' F .zo- ;,L/ z:

8 I l WITNESSES. L 1 E f a 06 Gama/Ma, M2, 5 I 4 144 l "4 orneyf (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. G. P. HEDGE.

AUTOMATIC STOP FOR ELEVATORS.

N0. 386,743. Patented July 24, 1888.

1% ['11 cases UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

G'EORGE PRIOR HEDGE, OF GARTHAGE, MISSOURI.

AUTOMATIC STOP FOR ELEVATORS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 386,743, dated July 24, 1888. Application filed February 18, 1888. Serial No. 264,488. (No model.)

To alt whom it may concern:

Belt known that I, GEORGE PRIOR HEDGE, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Carthage, in the county of Jasper and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Stops for Elevators; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skllled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being bad to the accompanyingdrawings, which form a part of this specification, and in whichl lgure 1 is a front view of as much of the guide-bars of my improved elevator as is necessary to fully illustrate my invention and of the cage, showing parts in dotted lines. Fig. 2 s a vertical sectional view of the same, Fig. 3 1s a side view of the parts shown in Fig. 1; and Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view taken on lineman, Fig. 1, andlooking upward against the bottom of the cage.

The same numerals of reference indicate the sameor corresponding parts in all thefigures. This invention has relation to elevators for use in buildings and in mines or similar places, and more particularly to stop devices for such elevators, by means of which the cage may be c automatically stopped if the rope should break, and for stopping and holding the ele- 'vator at the variouslevels and at the uppermost level; and it consists in the improved construction and combination of parts of such an elevator, ashereinafter more fully described and claimed. 1

In the accompanying drawings, the numeral 1 indicates the floor of the cage, 2 2 indicate theupright side pieces of the same; and 3 3 are the top beams of the cage. These parts of the cage may be modified in any suitable manner, according to the character and use of the elevator, as the cage may be open, as shown in the drawings, or it may be inclosed and cased in when used for the transport of passengers in buildings.

The sides of the elevator-shaft have two pairs of guide-bars, 4, which are connected by transverse cross-bars or rounds 5, at short distances from each other, and two inwardlycurved pawls or levers, 6, are pivoted between the side pieces of the cage near their lower or outer ends, and have springs 7, forcing the said ends outward, while the hoisting-rope 8 is'secured to the inner or upper ends of the said pawls or levers, the rope being divided or formed with two ends, 9, having a spreader, 10, between them and secured to the ends of the levers, which ends project above the top beams of the cage, rocking between them. It will now be seen that when a strain is upon the hoisting-rope, either by hoisting the cage or by letting it down, the upper arms of the levers are drawn upward and slightly out ward, which will draw the lower or outer ends in between the side pieces of the cage, compressing the springs, and the cage may travel freely up or down in the shaft; but if the rope should break or otherwise be slackened the springs will force the lower ends of the levers out, causing them to engage the cross-pieces or rounds between the guide-bars, stopping the cage, and in this manner it will be impossible for the cage to drop by any accident, as the release of the upper ends of the levers will cause them to sink and drop together by their own weight, as well as by the action of the springs against the lower arms, so that the action of the levers will be perfectly positive, even if the springs by an accident should have become inoperative.

Pawls or shouldered and beveled bars 11 are pivoted at their lower ends in casings 12 upon the sides of the guide-bars at the upper level of the elevator-shaft,having the shouleled sides 14 projecting outward into the .shaft, springs 15 in the casings forcing the pawls out, and the upper narrow arms of the pawls have the lower ends of levers 16 hearing against them, so that the pawls may be forced inward against the springs when the upper ends of these levers are drawn together. Cords or chains 17 are secured to the upper ends of these levers and pass around a pulley, 18, jourualed in a crosspiece, 19, in thetop of theshaft,andthe ends'of these cords or chainsare secured to the upper arm of a lever, 20, fulerumed upon the side of one of. the casings, so that by tilting this lever with its lower arm toward the shaft the cords or chains may be drawn and the pawls drawn back into the casings. It will be seen that when the elevator-cage is hoisted up and arrives to the upper level the side edges of the bottom of the cage will tilt the pawls in against the springs, and as soon as the said bottom has passed the shoulders of the pawls they will spring out again and form stops for the cage, preventing it from falling or descending until the lever has been tilted, the pawls thus-preventing any accidents caused by the rope breaking or becoming slackened, or any other accidents which are liable tov happen, especially at mines, by the cage falling from the top level. i The bottom of the cage is formed with two U cross-pieces, 21, having transverse slots 22, in

- which two bolts, 23, slide, which bolts may enbars or similar devices; but I.pre fer to use.

gage upwardly-facing notches 24 in the inner faces of ,the guide-bars, the notches being preferably formed at each landing of the elevator-shaft, and the inner ends of these bolts are pivoted to the two arms of a lever, 25, fulcrumed under the bottom of the cage and having a rod, 26, pivoted to its outer end, which rod slides in a slot, 27, in one of the crosspieces, and hasthe lower arm of a lever, 28, pivoted to it, the lever being fulcrumed in a slot, 29, in the bottom of the cage. It will be seen that the bolts may be tilted out by means of this lever, so as to engage the stoppingnotches in the guide-bars, and the cage may thus be held regardless of the hoisting-rope at each landing by these bolts and notches.

All these stopping devices may be used in one elevator, and are preferably used in one elevator; but'it follows that they may be used separately, and the devices are equally as applicable for passenger-elevators and freightelevators for buildings as for mining-elevators,- or for any other hoisting apparatus. using guide-bars'and a cage.

the guide-bars may be substituted by ratchet,-

If desired, he cross-bars or rounds between the lower ends in casings at the sides of the A shaft and having upwardly-facing beveled shoulders projecting out into the shaft, springs forcing the pawls outward, levers fulcrumed at their middles inthe casings above the pawls and bearing with their lower ends against the upper ends of the pawls, cords attached to the upper ends of the levers and passingaround a pulley at the middle of the top of the shaft,

and a lever at the side of the shaft having the cords secured to its upper end, as shown, and for the purpose specified.

' 2. In an elevator, the combination, with the cage and the guide-bars having upwardly-facing notches in; the facing sides at the landings,

engaging the said notches, a lever fulcrumed under thefloor of the cage and having the inner ends of the'bolts pivoted to it, a rodpivoted to one end of this lever, and a handlever fulcrumed in a slot in the floor of the cage, and having the other end of the rod pivpurpose specified.

-In testimony that I clai n1 :theforegoing as my own I have hereunto affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses. v GEORGE PRIOR HEDGE.

Witnesses: 1

' ISAAC CARTER WHEELER,

fEMA-NUEL ELIAS EDWARDS.

7o 7 of boltssliding under the floor of the cage and 

